Former Premier League referee issues verdict on key decision during Liverpool vs Fulham
Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher has had his say on a controversial moment during Fulham’s draw with Liverpool.
The debate is raging after Fulham and Liverpool’s entertaining 2-2 draw at Anfield on Saturday. The Cottagers picked up another huge point against one of the heavyweights thanks to goals from Andreas Pereira and Rodrigo Muniz that were cancelled out by efforts from Cody Gakpo and Diogo Jota.
But the game was conditioned by a controversial decision that saw Andy Robertson sent off after just 17 minutes. The Scot took out Harry Wilson as the Welsh forward looked to break through against his former club.
The red card is certainly a debatable one, with Wilson arguably not in control of the ball, therefore not guaranteed a goalscoring opportunity, while one could also argue Robertson made the challenge with no expectation of getting the ball, which could take the challenge into red card territory.
As fans continue the debate, former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher has had his say on the incident, telling Sky Sports News: “I have had a lot of chances to look at this again and I did not think it was a red card at the time, and I still do not. Robertson mis-controls the ball and Wilson nicks the ball. Is he in control of the ball? No.
"Is he going to gain control of the ball? Doubtful as the Liverpool player is going to get there first. Is he moving towards goal? No. there are too many variables and the 'O' stands for obvious. A more palatable decision would be a yellow card - if the ref [Tony Harrington] had whistled immediately, I think everybody would have accepted it."
Liverpool boss Arne Slot didn’t complain too much about the red card, saying after the game: “I think Robbo might have been a bit too injured to keep going because normally he’s faster than that,” Slot said, referring to Robertson’s mistimed recovery tackle on Wilson.
“It says a lot about his character that he wants to keep on going but it results in a red card. I think it’s just whether it’s offside. I was clear it wasn’t going to be changed. It’s maybe the only thing I didn’t complain about today.”